Minister of Defence Dragan Sutanovac today stated that the Military-Technical Institute (VTI) is the brains and the heart of Serbia’s defence industry and of the Serbian Army’s defence capabilities.During a visit to the Institute, accompanied by ambassadors and military envoys accredited in Serbia, Sutanovac stressed that in the previous period, the VTI developed over 1,300 products of multifunctional value for the Serbian Army, as well as for the civil sector.

Over the past several years funds have been invested in the VTI to help it regain its leading position in the region and beyond, he recalled.

Despite the reduced budget for the defence system in 2012, we have projected investments in the VTI of around €20 million, Sutanovac observed, recalling that the biggest export projects developed in Serbia were launched in this very institution.

All of these projects were launched primarily because of the needs of the Serbian defence system and its Army, but also for third markets, which is why today’s visit of foreign diplomats and military envoys is particularly important, he said, voicing his hope that international cooperation in this remit will continue.

Sutanovac and the delegation visited the textile, leather and footwear laboratory in the Sector for Materials and Protection, as well as the trisonic wind tunnel T-38 in the Experimental Aerodynamics Sector.

The VTI is the largest scientific and research facility in Serbia where the existing arms and military equipment are modernised and new ones are researched and developed.